Every year we see plenty of exclusives - web site exclusives, convention
exclusives, magazine exclusives, store exclusives, club exclusives - it's
gotten to the point where the term 'exclusive' doesn't mean what it once
did.

These exclusives are often variants of main figures, and lots of
people hate variants, at least the stupid kind. But not all variants
are stupid - there are plenty that take on visually unique and amusing
versions of important characters.

Such is the case with the Germ Fighting
Invader Zim. This isn't a common look for Zim by any means, but it was
certainly visually amusing and very memorable. This exclusive, who
comes pack with germ ridden version of doggy suit Gir, is a Hot Topic
exclusive.

They've had them for about a month now, and I'm a bit behind on
this one. I was just going to skip it - God knows, with the new JLU
three packs, and finally ML10 sitting here, I could have found something
else to review tonight - but once I opened him up, I knew I had to talk
about him.

You can find this guy at most Hot Topic stores right now, and I
THINK he runs around $25. I bought him a few weeks ago, and I'm going
from memory, which ain't the greatest these days.

Packaging - ***1/2
I might love clamshells, but I love boxes more. Generally they have
more art and text, are easier to store for the MIBBers, and easier to open
and then re-close later. This package fills all those requirements
nicely. I did notice that an awful lot of them were damaged though, so
the MIBBers will want to pay special attention.

Sculpt - ***1/2;
This was *this* close to being a four star sculpt. I love the costume,
and more importantly, I love the execution of the costume on this
figure. While this might not be the most immediately recognizable Zim
figure on my shelf, it's likely to become one of my very favorites.

Two things stopped that perfect score. First, there's my pet peeve
on getting a figure to stand on his own. Unfortunately, Zim does not,
even with those huge feet. You'll need the included stand.

The second is the very obvious burr mark around the edge of the
cap. This is probably from mold leakage (which sounds a lot more
painful than it is), but should have been removed before painting.
That color just makes it all the more obvious, and it's the only visual
problem that hurts an otherwise amazing sculpt.

Paint - ***1/2
Occasionally, the Zim line has had paint issues. That's not the case
here, and that is great, since there's such a wide array of colors used.

The lines are clean and neat, with some great masking of the smaller
areas. Colors are bright, and both the application and finish are even
and smooth.

I was particularly impressed with the germy infestation on Gir, which has
even been slightly shadowed. This is the kind of paint ops that we
know Palisades is capable of, and that's made them such a fan favorite with
cartoon lines. Oh, there's still a stray mark here or there, and the
occasionally sloppy edge line, but overall the paint compliments the sculpt
extremely well.

Articulation - Zim ***; Gir **
There really isn't much more articulation that you could add to these
figures, simply due to the restrictions of the character designs.

Zim has a cut neck though, and he would score better with some form of
ball joint. he also has ball jointed shoulders, cut wrists (at the top
of the gloves), and waist. You can do some basic arm poses, turn the
head a little to and fro, and that's about it.

Gir is even more restricted, but damn, he's got some tiny limbs.
There's a cut neck, ball jointed shoulders, and that's it.

Accessories - ***1/2A few more accessories is always nice, and Palisades has spoiled us with
some of the other Zim releases. Still, we get useful stuff here that
makes perfect sense.

Both figures come with display stands, which is good since I couldn't get
either to stand without them. I expected that with Gir, and his stand
includes a short piece of clear plastic to attach him to the black
stand. The plastic is a little too short though, and he tended to lean
since it didn't fit deeply enough into either hole. I'm sure you know
what I'm talking about.

I expected Zim to stand though, what with those big Kleenex boxes on his
feet. But nope, I couldn't manage it without the black base.

There's also a nifty little spray can of Germ Away that fits in either
hand of Zim. There's also two rather large and nasty germs, identical
in sculpt and paint of course. And finally, there's the sloppy
burger. It's a nice smattering of accessories, but it still felt a
little lacking.

Fun Factor - ***1/2
These are fun, although small kids will probably get frustrated with the
tiny limbs and tough to manipulate joints. Still, with good
articulation and great sculpting, these are just begging to be played with.

Value - **1/2I'm being a little soft on this guy - you're only getting two figures
for around $25. Then again, there are two major factors involved -
it's Hot Topic, a store notorious for high prices, and I'm betting the
production run on these was VERY small.

Things to watch out for -
I didn't see any of the half dozen I've looked at that had serious paint
issues, but it's always a good idea to keep your eyes on it just in case.

Overall - ***1/2This is a great figure, and an excellent exclusive. So often we
get just simple redecos, or worse, basic repaints. Here, we are really
getting a whole new figure, and a really cool one at that. If I could
only own one Zim figure, this wouldn't be it, simply because it's not a
definitive version. But if I can own two, than this is the second one
I'd buy.